Translation movement control device



TRANSLATION MOVEMENT CONTROL DEVICE Filed May 27, 1966 INVENTORS ROGER HEA/R/ hjUl-PET JACQUES AA/DRE HURET United States Patent ice 3,416,387, Patented Dec. 17, 1968 4 Claims. (c1. 74-473 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The invention relates to a side-travel control device comprising supports receiving a pivoting of pulleys or the like, over which a belt or the like passes so that this belt angularly positions these pulleys in relation to each other so that when the supports pivot, the pulleys retain the same orientation thus enabling the side-travel control of the mechanical assembly connected to one of its pulleys.

Devices are already known which enable displacements to be made by the translation movement of mechanical elements.

These devices consist of deformable parallelograms and are currently used in mechanics when an element is required to be displaced in an arc of a circle, so that it is always turned in the same direction.

Actually, in a deformable parallelogram, the opposite side to the fixed side has its ends displaced according to arcs of a circle which have for a radius the length of the other two sides of the parallelogram.

However, these devices are generally heavy, cumbersome and only aflford displacement by translation movement which is relative, owing to the play that may exist in all the articulations.

The present invention seeks more particularly to obviate these disadvantages and to produce a translation movement control device which would be simple and quite cheap, strong and occupying the minimum space.

Another object of the invention is to produce a device that can be immediately adapted to any kind of mechanical assembly with a translation movement control.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be revealed by the description and claims hereafter, as well as in the attached drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 shows an exploded perspective of a method of embodiment of the device according to the invention,

FIGURE 2 is a cross section of the device shown in FIGURE 1, when assembled.

The present invention is intended to enable displacement control by a translation movement of all mechanical elements.

The present description will relate to a case where the device is applied to displacement control by translation movement of a gear-change fork, but it should be understood that the invention applies to any other device in which it is required to displace a member by translation movement, and for example, windscreen-wiper elements, gear box control forks, conveyor appliances, etc.

The device shown in the attached drawings consists of two plates 1 and 2 enclosing elements 3 and 4 which are pivotally mounted in these plates 1 and 2 forming sideplates.

To this end, the elements 3 and 4 which are made in the form of rollers comprise side extensions 3 and 4 on each face which are housed in openings 1 and 2 in the side-plates.

The mounting assembly is obtained by means of screws 5 and '6 passed through axial perforations 3 and 4 of the rollers 3 and 4.

However, the side extensions 4 and 3 of these rollers 3 and 4 are made with a slightly greater length than the thickness of the side-plates 1 and 2 so that they are flush with the external faces of these side-plates. In this way, the screws 5 and 6, when they are tightened by the nuts 5 and 6 are locked in relation to these rollers 3 and 4.

The rollers 3 and 4 also comprise at least one peripheric notch 3 and 4 in which are housed respectively at least one boss 7 and 7 made on the inner wall of a flexible band 7. This flexible band is made, for instance, of plastic.

A One of the rollers, the roller 3, for instance, is made integral with a fixed support by means of the screw 5, whereas the roller 4 is made integral with a controlled means 10, for instance, a gear-change fork, by means of the screw 6.

We perceive that owing to this mounting, by acting, for example, on the small tongue 2 of the side-plate 2, we cause this side-plate to pivot around the pin materialized by the screw 5. On this account, the roller 4 will move in an arc of a circle, but the orientation of this roller will constantly remain the same, as its orientation direction is linked up by the flexible band 7 and the lugs 7 and 7 to the orientation of the roller 3, which is fixed,

as it is secured by the screw 5 against the fixing lug 9.

As the orientation of the roller 4 is always the same, the element 10 which is made integral with this roller by the screw 6 also moves in an arc of a circle, this fork thus remaining always turned in the same direction.

It will thus be possible, by crosswise displacement, to control a chain placed in this fork so as to make it run from one driving pinion to another.

It will be noted that the endless band 7 shown in perspective in FIGURE 1 can be replaced by any other similar element; thus, this band could be replaced by a cable or metal wire which would be fixed at some point on the periphery of the rollers 3 and 4. Also, this crown could be replaced by a chain.

This fixing takes place, for example, by screwing by means of a screw, by pinching, by gripping, by means of a clip, or any other means.

Also, the rollers 3 and 4 can be replaced by any other similar means, for example, a pulley in whose groove the flexible element will be placed, such as a band or cable.

A device of this kind which is extremely easy to make and very cheap, possesses many advantages. More particularly, its overall dimensions are very small and it occurs in a compact shape free from uneven parts. Actually, the thickness of the flexible band can be reduced, seeing that it can be replaced by a cable and the distance of the two parallel strands of this band can be determined by allowing for the diameter of the rollers 3 and 4 so as to correspond to the thickness of the parts of the side-plates l and 2. In this case, the control device occurs in the form of a rectangular section plates whose ends or rounded olf.

This device is particularly advantageous, in the case where it is applied to the control of a gear-change, as it can be attached to the frame of a bicycle for controlling the movement of the gear-change fork without the device going outside of the general space required for this bicycle.

Of course, the invention is not restricted to the examples of embodiment described and shown, and from which other methods and forms of embodiment can be provided without going outside of the scope of the invention for that purpose.

What we claim is:

1. Translation movement control device, comprising two mobile supports forming side-plates, two rollers provided with side extensions for the pivoting of these rollers between the side-plates, these extensions being flush with the external surfaces of said side-plates, at least one peripheric cavity on these rollers, an endless band forming a belt comprising at least two bosses housed in the peripheric cavity of the rollers for keeping their orientation relative during the displacement of the side-plates and a mechanical element outside the side-plates and secured to the flush surface of one of the rollers to make it integral with these rollers and thus to control this mechanical assembly by a translation movement.

2. Translation movement control device, comprising two mobile supports forming side-plates, two rollers provided with side extensions for the pivoting of these rollers between the side-plates, these extensions being flush with the external surfaces of said side-plates, axial perforations on the rollers for the passage of assembling members of the device, a mechanical element external to the sideplates and secured on the flush surface of one of the rollers by means of one of said assembling members to make this mechanical assembly integral with these rollers and thus to control said mechanical assembly by a translation movement.

3. Translation movement control device, comprising two mobile supports forming side-plates, two rollers provided with side extensions for the pivoting of these rollers between the side-plates, these extensions being flush with the external surface of said side-plates axial perforations on the rollers for the passage of assembling members of the device, a mechanical element external to the sideplates and secured on the flush surface of one of the rollers by means of one of said assembling members for making this mechanical assembly integral with these rollers and for thus controlling said mechanical assembly by a translation movement, the other assembling member forming the mechanical connecting means of the other roller to a fixed support.

4. Side-travel control device, comprising, two mobile supports forming side-plates, two rollers provided with lateral extensions for pivoting these rollers between the side-plates, axial perforations on the rollers for the passage of assembling members for the device, a mechanical element outside the side-plates secured to one of the rollers by means of one of the assembly members and thus to control said mechanical assembly in side-travel.

HALL C. COE, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

